Back catalogue: Techno (All)

Review: London underground night train riders Deadbeat Records prioritise techno-breaks handmade for late night and early morning dancefloors, times when both the best and worst comes emerges from each of us. Their inaugural Deadbeat Breaks compilation hears six out of ten full digital curations brought to a shadowy, space-invaded black vinyl truncation, with modern talking synth vomits from Olly Rant, booty bass hups from Hunter Starkings, hackney parroting hurtles from Rnbws, and a closing breakstep broil from Hooverian Blur.

Review: Rick 8 is the techno alias of Italy's Riccardo Falsini, and here he revives the pioneering spirit of his iconic Interactive Test label with this early gem, which offers an essential slice of trance, techno and progressive house history. Known for reshaping genre boundaries, the label was a beacon of innovation, as this EP shows. Each track is a potent club tool, designed for transcendental dancefloor moments and sonic ascension from the chunky tribalism of 'Hypernotes Velocity' to the standout remix of 'C'Mon' by Sound Metaphors affiliate Trent, who injects progressive firepower. 'Born To Sinthetize' is a deeper, spiritual sound with flashy synth work married to loose drum loops.

Review: Rivet's newest album for Editions Mego blends optimism and negation, emerging sanguinely from a period of personal tragedy and disillusionment undergone by the artist. Mika Hallback, a key figure in the Swedish underground, first gained attention with industrial techno as Grovskopa before shifting to experimental work, including On Feather and Wire (2020). After the loss of fellow musician Peter Rehberg and his dog Lilo, Hallback created the somber L+P-2 (2023), and now Peck Glamour marks his return, coming reinfused with hope and exploration. Drawing on punk, industrial, techno, and trauma, the album combines synthetic and organic elements, with 'Orbiting Empty Cocoon', with its tugging, metal ballistic sound-rooms sounding like an Au-technic, cybernetic ritual, a dance anthem 'Patitur Butcher' and 'We Left Before We Came' concluding on comparatively layered zoonotic notes; posthuman synthesis backed by birdsong.